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Monday, November 2, 2015

WinterHaven Books is excited to feature a local independent bookstore I often frequent to attend author events and purchase many of my coveted novels that hold a special spot on my bookshelf.With the holiday season right around the corner, let's remember to shop at our local bookstores to keep them in business. Shopping online for eBooks and physical copies is definitely convenient, but without our support, these brick and mortar stores will soon be a thing of the past. I remember shopping at Waldons, B.Daltons and Borders, which are no longer in business, so I've made it a point to visit my local bookstores and pick up a book or gift to show my support.Let me share a few features I enjoy when visiting Vroman's in Pasadena, CA.

First off, Vromans is one of the oldest bookstore in Southern California and has been in business for over 100 years! The environment, employees and books galore have me visiting this store at least ten times a year even though it's a good 45 minutes to an hour drive from my house. In October alone, I visited the store three times!

With over two stories of books to choose from, I love browsing their special features, such as Employee Picks, Best Sellers, Bargain Books and Seasonal Catches. Their shelves are always so organized and easy to puruse. Oh and did I mention they have over TWO stories of book displays to browse?!

Most recently, they had an amazing display of chilling novels, zombie and apocalyptic picks, and wicked reads that will keep you up at night. These selections change throughout the year depending on the season and what's hot.Even if you're busy tackling your mile high TBR pile and not planning to buy books (rarely happens with me), there are other great reasons to visit Vroman's. I love browsing through their gift sections that include totes, holiday and home decorations, and all sorts of trinkets that would make great additions to your bookshelf. When I'm done browsing, I always make a quick trip to their cafe before checking out. Their Chai Latte is probably the best in the Southland, and believe me, I've taste-tested many of them!

Last, but definitely not least, Vroman's has the BEST Young Adult section that I have ever seen in any bookstore. They have the newest and most noteworthy selections, where you can find recent releases and best sellers. If you're looking for box sets of Mortal Instruments, Hunger Games, Maze Runner, and Divergent for holiday gifts, you can find it all there. Stacks of YA Contemporaries, Fantasies, Paranormals, Dystopias, and so much more can be found piled high! There are standalone displays for the newest releases like Illuminae and The Rose Society to name a couple. In addition, they have amazing displays of trending authors such as John Green, Gayle Forman and Marie Lu. Speaking of Marie Lu, I recently attended her author signing at Vroman's, which I'll be sure to share with you soon. I love attending author events at Vroman's because they do a great job of hosting these events throughout the year.So for my most recent visit at Vroman's I picked up the latest Stephenie Meyer 10 year edition novel that includes Life and Death, as well as Twilight. I'm excited to read it and see if it takes me back to when I was an avid Twilight fan. As you can see, a store as amazing and magical as Vroman's deserves the patronage of avid readers. I can't say enough how great the store and employees are, and how hard they work to connect with readers. My hope is that stores such as Vroman's continue to have staying power within our community!Be sure to visit Vroman's in Pasadena, CAWebsite | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

While I was at Vroman's, I also picked up a paperback copy of Let it Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle. I thought this would be a nice giveaway to start off the holiday season for those starting to dive into their holiday reads. Simply fill out the Rafflecopter and share with us (1) a local bookstore (independent or otherwise) that you love to visit or (2) a thoughtful comment about Vromans! This giveaway is open to US Residents only. Goodluck!

6 comments:

The closest Indie bookstore near me is about 2 hours away. I really hate that about small town life, not many things go on around here. I usually shop online or go to BAM, Wal-Mart, or B&N - which are all about 30 minutes away.The last time I visited an Indie store was last summer in Orlando. They had really cheap classics, so I left with a few of my favorites.

I alway like to visit Barnes and Noble, Target, K-Mart and Costco whenever I want to buy books because they're the closest to home! Sometime, when I want to buy cheap books, I always visit a bookstore just a few minutes walk from our house. The books there are cheap because they're already used books. And I agree with you! I also think that Vroman's has the best young adult section I've ever seen. Would love to visit the store in the near future!